Saturday, March 18, 2017

Insanity on the Workbench

It has been a while since I've posted an actually modeling update. So here is the the disaster that is my workbench I know it it insane that there are this many models on my bench, but well...

The above two photos illustrate my disaster. They also show the grey and rain of Seattle and our urban living situation. It is a nice view...

1. The Eduard 1/72 Spitfire wings. The very complicated wheel wells pose no issue if you pay attention, clean up the parts, and take care with the glue. Fit is just fine other than the tips, and that may just be my hamfistedness. The detailed photo above shows the slight miss match. The overall photo shows the other tip slathered in Perfect Plastic Putty. This putty is a white material of toothpaste like consistency. The neat thing about the product is you let it dry and then remove it with a q-tip dipped in water. Usually it leaves a slight panel line like depression, which is what I'm looking for. The wing is covered in rivets so I'm trying not to sand them away. Not sure what scheme I'll be using, but RCAF 416 "City of Oshawa" Squadron is an option.

2. The Eduard Hellcat. A really nice kit with excellent fit. Painted in Gunze Mr. Color Gloss Sea Blue, I need to add a second coat...I missed a few spots on the wingtip. Otherwise things are going well. It will be Fleet Air Arm, of course...a neat Hellcat from the HMS Formidable with a replacement cowl and aileron. The Hellcat is for the Northwest Scale Modeler's September display at the Museum of Flight on "US Aircraft in Foreign Service." This is a weekend boxing I started 2012. I guess I missed the memo!

3. Academy Kittyhawk IV (P-40N) Also for the Foreign US Aircraft display, this one will be RCAF. I was thinking of doing the Kittyhawk from the "Son of Lassie" movie but I'm tempted by the one in Carl Vincent's AviaDossier -Canadian Aircraft of WWII book as it has the "Overseas" maple leaf badge. Either way, Olive Drab over Neutral Grey. This guy needs a tad more sanding and then primer.

4. The Revell AG F4U-4 Corsiar is a somewhat newer kit. That being said, it isn't a great kit. The wing tips are separate, which isn't usually a big deal, other than they put the joint smack dab in the middle of the fabric wing. So I've been fighting those joints. (See above before primer and after primer.) The cockpit is a mess of variants....the kit has the lower center instrument panel for a F4U-4 along with a decal to place over it. The rear bulkhead has the cutouts for the rear vision windows of the birdcage Corsair, the seat looks closer to that of an AU-1 or F4U-5, and the floor part is closer to the foot troughs of the -1 than a correct floor for a -4 Corsair. Probably the biggest issue I have with the kit...outside of the join line for the wingtips...why, Revell, why?...is that no rocket stubs or pylons are included. They were pretty ubiquitous on the -4 Corsair. The cowl parts are pretty crudely molded and the open cowl flaps have the gap tooth look reminiscent of the Revell P-47D. Overall, there are some detail issues, the fuselage is a tad long behind the cockpit break, and there is some asinine engineering which causes some fit issues, but it is probably the best 72 F4U-4 on the market at this point in time. (Also, to add confusion, it appears that the Revell AG factory got confused and some kits left the factory with the F4U-1A canopy. My kit does have the correct F4U-4 canopy with the flat windscreen.)

This one is being done with a new Starfighter decal sheet (thanks David!) that features the first African American US Navy pilot to fly combat. The crux of the story is that Ensign Jesse Brown was was shot down on a raid during the Battle of Chosin Reservoir in 1950 and his wingman crashed to save him. Sadly, the wingman was not successful and Jesse died in the cockpit of his Corsair. For his actions, the wingman, Tom Hudner was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. There is a pretty popular, but uneven book, called "Devotion" by Adam Makos about Jesse and Tom. I'll post a book review of "Devotion" in the near future.

5. The Revell Hunter for the Northwest Scale Modelers Suez Crisis display in June. The Revell kit is quite nice. Mine has been converted with Aeroclub resin from a Hunter F.6 into the earlier Hunter F.5. An Aeroclub white metal ejection seat has been fitted to help hold down the nose and add some extra cockpit detail seat. My kit got crushed at some point, so all the Mr. Surfacer on the nose to to fix that problem. It is time to sand. The black on the wingtips is a black tinted "guitar" cyanoacrylate glue that I've been experimenting with.

6. The Hobby Boss Seahawk also for the Suez Crisis display. I've not done much on this one yet. I need to get moving!

About Me

An expat Canadian now living in Seattle, Jim builds RCAF, RCN, US Navy, and Commonwealth aircraft in 1/72 scale. Jim is an avid reader and a sometimes writer, a fan of rock, folk, and jam bands, and a private pilot. When he’s not exploring one of the many museums, parks, and libraries of Puget Sound with his wife and their daughter, Jim is a practicing attorney.